N S Soundar Rajan, who has taken the initiative to help rural school children with English language skills, would like to hear from volunteers with two or three hours to spare daily. His focus is on government primary school children near Mysore with little exposure to written and spoken English. Mr Rajan has offered to meet transport and sundry expenses. Those interested could e-mail nssr@vsnl.com or call 94483 54726.

Mr Rajan's move is noteworthy. It would be instructive if he could give some specifics about the hours (forenoon or afternoon) he has in mind. This could help some prospective volunteers make up their mind.

And then, not everyone with volunteering instinct would have two or three hours to spare on a daily basis. There may be those willing to volunteer once or twice a week, on weekday evenings, or only during weekends, if they could find suitable assignments. Maybe one could think in terms of English teaching programmes for needy students in city neighbourhoods, to tap volunteer resources with a flexible time-span.